Year in China

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Italian Studies at Liverpool is a rapidly growing subject and is now available as a Single Honours, Major, Joint or Minor subject. As Major, Joint or Minor subject, Italian can be studied in combination with both language and non-language subjects to offer you the benefits and enhanced employability that language skills and intercultural awareness provide. The Italian language carries an unparalleled cultural capital. The Italian Renaissance laid the foundations for much of western values and culture of the last five centuries. Italy has produced remarkable figures such as Dante, Michelangelo, Galileo, Fellini and Eco, to name but a few. According to UNESCO, over 60% of the world’s art treasures are found in Italy. A founding member of the European Community, today’s Italy is one of the world’s top exporters and is ranked amongst the world’s largest economies; the UK is the country’s third trading partner in the EU. Studying Italian allows you to explore the country’s past and present from a privileged perspective.

The results for UK universities ranked by student satisfaction in the National Student Survey 2016 show that Italian at Liverpool has scored 100%, 10% above the national average for this subject. This impressive result reflects the time Italian staff spent supporting students outside of class as well as the excellent quality of teaching. Italian Studies provides an excellent opportunity to explore Italian culture in its many facets. Research is interdisciplinary and with an emphasis on the contemporary.

Modules include Italian language, linguistics, cultural history, cinema, contemporary fiction and popular culture. Extracurricular activities include an Italian Cinema Club and an Italian Society, and an annual Italian-themed lecture, the Lucrezia Zaina Bequest Lecture, hosted by the Vice-Chancellor, and with more than 400 tickets reserved for the event every year. In Liverpool, cultural and institutional support is provided by the first Dante Alighieri Society to be founded in the UK and by a Consulate which fosters and enhances the local Italian heritage.

We have offered our students the possibility of winning Italian government-sponsored scholarships for summer schools in Italy and continue to work on the expansion of both academic and business links with Italy to assist during the Year Abroad. The Italian subject group at Liverpool consists predominantly of native speaker tutors and language assistants of Italian. We research and teach Italian film studies, contemporary literature, linguistics, cultural history, postcolonial studies, translation and interpreting.

Programme in detail

In Year One you will study advanced or beginners’ language modules as appropriate, as well as foundational modules which serve as a broad introduction to the literary, cultural, film, linguistic and historical modules offered in the subsequent years of the degree. You will also take a ‘language awareness’ module in the first year which is designed to support your language learning by sensitising you to issues in language and linguistics, and a ‘texts and context’ module which develops your research skills through a portfolio of tasks structured around reading a key literary text. During your second and final year you will take language modules plus cultural options which have a strong emphasis on both modern and contemporary Italy, and on the place of Italy in Europe and the world.

For students taking Italian at 100% you will follow a research pathway in your second and final year which culminates in a dissertation on a subject of your choice.

At the University of Liverpool, Italian may be taken from A level or as a beginners’ language where no previous qualifications in the language are necessary. In the first year, our vibrant programmes at advanced level will both refresh and extend your knowledge of Italian. If you are a beginner, our fast-moving programme will quickly take you to A level standard during the course of the first year.

You will spend one year in Italy as an assistant in a school, as a student at a partner university or on a work placement. If you combine Major Italian with a Minor in another language, you may choose to split the year abroad between Italy and another country.

Choosing this subject as a Joint

Split your degree between the study of Italian language and cultures and another subject of your choice.

When you split your degree between Italian and another subject area, you will study an Italian language module, at beginners or advanced level, and a cultural module per semester, alongside two other modules in your other subject.

If you combine Italian with a non-language subject, you will spend the Year Abroad in Italy as an assistant in a school, as a student at a university or on a work placement. If you combine Italian with another language, you will split the year between two countries.

Department Key Facts

Number of first year students

124 Year One undergraduates in 2018

UK league tables

Ranked 19th for Modern Languages in the Guardian University Guide 2018

Department resources

The Department has recently moved to a fully-refurbished Grade I listed building in the beautiful Georgian Abercromby Square. We have our own Language Lounge which is stocked with language-learning resources and provides a beautiful and contemplative environment for group work or private study. It has five PCs specialising in language learning programmes. We have our own Modern Language film collection which is available to students for loan.

Research performance

The 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF) graded 72% of our staff publications as world-leading or internationally excellent with the remaining 28% considered to be of recognised international quality. This ranks us above Nottingham, Leeds, Birmingham, Bristol, Oxford and Exeter.

Why this subject?

Learn a language the Liverpool way

At Liverpool, you can choose which level to learn at with confidence, knowing we are specialists in teaching languages to all levels. all levels. Beginners will benefit from our years of experience in accompanying students in their first steps in their chosen language; advanced students will find their knowledge broadened and deepened.

Access new facilities

Our fully-refurbished Language Lounge is the centre of departmental life. It is a lively place where you can work on your language skills with the aid of online resources, watch foreign-language films, meet someone for a chat in your chosen language or simply settle down with "un espresso".

Experience our ‘connected’ Liverpool curriculum

Our teaching is informed by partnerships with organisations across and outside the University. As part of your modules, you may visit an exhibition, deliver a language taster in a school, do an internship in one of our partner organisations, or interview a film maker. Our department routinely organises visits by award-winning writers, directors and translators who will share valuable insights into their work and we recently received a University Learning and Teaching award for enriching the experience of studentsin and beyond the classroom.

Pursue your own adventure

Throughout your degree you will have opportunities to choose and research a subject that interests you as part of your assessment, whether as a book report, presentation or research project leading up to a dissertation.

Broaden your understanding of language and culture with a year abroad

You’ll spend your third year teaching English, attending university, completing a work placement or working for a non-government organisation (NGO) in one or more countries relevant to the language or languages you are studying.

Modern Languages and Cultures

Foundation courses

International students who do not qualify for direct entry to this degree can prepare at Liverpool International College, where successful completion of the Foundation Certificate guarantees entry to this degree.

Go Higher

For adult learners with few or no formal qualifications, the University offers a one year, part-time, fast-track foundation course. More information can be found on our Go Higher webpages. Places are subject to successful performance to meet department entry requirements. Applications must be completed by May for September entry.

Contact

Honours Select

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Study abroad

Our Year Abroad scheme offers you an unusually diverse set of choices for how you will spend the third year of your studies. The year is spent in Europe, Latin America, or China, at university (all language areas), teaching English, or completing an independent work placement in commerce or at a non-governmental organisation (NGO) in one or more countries where the target language is spoken (currently for Europe and Latin America). If you are studying two languages you will normally split the year between two countries. A reduced fee is payable for the year which you spend abroad and three-year degree programmes exist if you are keen to study Modern Languages but are unable, for good reason, to go abroad.

When abroad you will be able to immerse yourself in the language and culture of your destination while also enjoying the support from dedicated academic members of staff who will guide you through the practicalities of your Year Abroad, by offering pastoral support remotely, by visiting students abroad, and advising you with your chosen assessment. Spending a year abroad has huge personal and academic benefits, as well as giving you a head start in the graduate job market. With a Year Abroad in Modern Languages and Cultures at Liverpool, the world really is your oyster!